Yo! Slang!
 

What's the word from the Philippines?

At least 1,000 killed in Philippine city: Red Cross

Jesus.

I have a Google Earth file w/Dwellars locations (as many as I could determine, anyway) placemarked, I'm showing Slang at like 5,000 feet elevation.

So, maybe Slang was out of the worst of it? Utilities/internet are prolly another story...


ETA:Tacloban City is something like 500 miles from where I'm showing Slang. I'm not 100% on my placemark for Slang.

I'd expect him to think about elevation and such before settling but you're right about utilities even in the best of times.

Everything is fine here in Baguio. It's true, the elevation is about 5,000 ft and that fact helps.

I don't hear anyone here mention the typhoon. It's far removed from us here. There wasn't any damage to speak of directly following the storm and it's even less of a topic of discussion here now.

There was a donation box on the counters of several local businesses here but were people donating? Doubtful. An even better question...are the proceeds going to the typhoon victims?

It's not that I don't care or that all of my friends are fat white old bastards, it's just that it's quickly fading out of mind.

There are a few downsides living in Baguio but it is insulated from many of the troubles in the Philippines. Floods, earthquakes, typhoons, terrorism...these events are rare here but common throughout the country.

The largest inconvenience here is actually parking. And that's not normally a tragedy. :)

Afterthought here, the internet was out for 12 hours during the storm but the electric was steady all through except for the streetlights. The sounds of corrugated steel sheet roofs were making an eerie sound as the wind blew but no one in this neighborhood had a roof fail as far as I know.

Glad to hear you're OK. I guess it's been quite awhile since your aquaculture project got washed away, along with the roads.

Yes, Bruce.

Now I'm working on a computer based venture which is going better. Not great by any stretch but better.

We may still pick up the aquaculture project in the future but for now it's on hold.

We only go there a few times a year since there's no house there, just a vacant lot. There are more houses being built nowdays and there are a lot more outsiders in that small town. Some foreigners, some Pinoys just from out of the area.

For me it's like taking a trip back in time...in a place that English is not the language...that rural peoples are trying to survive on animals and crops...where many people still do not have TV.

It's simple. Many times I appreciate simple living.

Hi Slang.

Hi fargon

Not much to report here aside from my enjoyment of the simplicity of life here.

The weather here is fantastic. Now that we're out of the rainy season we get rain for a few hours a week instead of a day.

Driving on these narrow concrete roads is both entertaining and a challenge. It's gotten easier now that I know the rules of the game. Up on the sidewalk? Acceptable when there's no one occupying the space but only on the secondary roads.

It's much more fun at night for the lack of congested streets. There are a few 24hr McDonalds, tons of bars and a few coffee houses that are open late if not all night.

This is a different world without bottomless law (TM:Griff) and enforcers for every aspect of life. That part makes me smile...and breathe easy. There's a flipside though. Freedom in masses isn't always attractive. But for me it's always more attractive than control systems in every direction.

As I walk my dog in the morning drinking a cold beer, I never get homesick. My life was one without safety nets before I came here. That helps one acclimate here. It's up to YOU. There's no teat from the government to suck on. If that's what you need, you are in serious trouble.

There are other things to suck on but that's another post.

It's been a long while since I've overposted images and stuff here so maybe it's time to post a few here now.

This is Santo Tomas. It's a adjoining town of Baguio City.

Google Earth shows the elevation at 7200 ft above sea level.

It's surely more difficult to walk up these mountain roads. But the view is truly beautiful from the top here.

This car was parked on Naguillian road the other day.

It's a '73 Ford Capri. My best friend had one in high school and they can be very fast.

This Capri also stands out because the majority of the cars here are the same type and model. The same Toyotas, Nissans, Hondas...

While it's not in great shape this condition would be perfect to do a restore. Everything is still there. It might need some attention but you wouldn't have to bring it in to have it installed.

This is a picture of a truck with a lift, big tires and rims.

It's not terribly interesting to many people but it means something very specific to me. That there are enough people here in the Philippines that can spend money on these types of trucks that have very limited practical use. It's a fun truck. Or a show off truck.

That's an indicator to me. The tires and rims are expensive and the resale is not great.

This is a sign that there is disposable income that's being spent on things that people here want, not need. Instead of cash going into the bank people are spending money here at Jeff's.

IMO there's far too much cash being saved for the sake of saving.

This is one example of people doing things they like to do with their money. This has not been a trend here in the Philippines.

Solid insight.

I took my nephew to the pedal car park the other day and here are a few pics from outing.

Residential properties are so crowded that Burnham park is very popular not only with the kids but everyone else as well.

Burnham Park is something on the line of Central Park in New York. You can see the details in the link below.

Burnham Park - Details and History

We should have taken a photo of all the different vendors renting various pedal cars. There are a lot of them.

They cost about $3 an hour to rent and the oval track is about 300 feet long.

For many kids, this is the first and only place that they can learn to ride a bike and then practice.

4 person cars, 2 person cars, 1 person cars and bicycles with training wheels are rented and ridden
here.

The gearing on all vehicles is pretty low so you can't get going too fast without pedaling faster than
is comfortable.

Lucas and I both rode for about 45 minutes.

It was fun for both of us. I got my exercise in for the day.

Temps here in Baguio have been 60-70f during the day. Nice temp for
fat guys riding pedal cars at high altitude.